The present invention relates generally to the manufacture of pantyhose, and in particular to a new pantyhose automatic manufacturing system for removing hosiery blanks from a supply source, orienting the blanks in a predetermined manner, conveying the blanks to a positioning and transferring assembly which insures proper positioning of the blanks on the clamping assemblies of a pantyhose seaming machine, severing aligned hosiery blanks, inserting a gusset, and seaming the blanks to form the garment body portion, transferring the pantyhose to a toe closer machine, closing the toe portions and doffing the pantyhose garments therefrom.
Traditionally, pantyhose manufacturing involved knitting tubular blanks on a circular knitting machine, pairs of knit blanks are removed from a supply bin by an operator and positioned and aligned by the operator upon clamping assemblies of a line closing machine where they are partially slit and sewn to form the body portion of the pantyhose garment. A gusset may be inserted into the crotch of the garment if so desired. An operator then seams the toe portions closed or mounts the garment on a toe closing machine for subsequent seaming. Alternatively, the toe portions of the tubular blanks may be closed in a separate operation prior to placing the tubes upon the line closer.
In recent years, means have been developed for transferring hosiery articles between a line closer machine and a toe closer machine as taught, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,550,868 and 4,620,494. However, a manual loading operation still is required.
In the present invention, the cost of producing pantyhose is substantially reduced since operator handling of the hosiery blanks or semi-finished pantyhose is eliminated.
According to the invention, knit tubular fabric blanks are automatically, sequentially, randomly retrieved from a reservoir or other supply source, oriented in a specified manner, conveyed to a positioning and transferring assembly for aligning, orienting and removing any pleats from the blanks before they are automatically transferred to clamping assemblies of a pantyhose seaming machine where the blanks are slit and sewn to define the body portion of a pantyhose garment. The sewn blanks subsequently are transferred to a machine where the blank toe portions are sewn closed.
The main object of the invention is the provision of a system for manufacturing a pantyhose garment from tubular knit blanks in a fully automatic manner without operator intervention.
Another object of the invention is the provision of a new and improved pantyhose producing system which increases production, reduces expense, and eliminates manual loading operations.
Still another object of the invention is an apparatus for automatically donning hosiery blanks on a pantyhose seaming machine in an aligned, oriented manner.
Further objects and advantages will appear from the following description of the invention explained by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings.